Hotel Contract Hotel Contract NegotiationsNegotiations

Diane C. Barnette, CMP

Director of Conference Planning

National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges

Meeting Specifications

A good hotel contract starts with an accurate reflection of your meeting needs that shows the hotel the . . .

“Value of your program”

Meeting Specifications

Group name, title, preferred and alternate dates for program

Sleeping rooms required

Meeting space required

Food and beverage required

Group history

Ideally includes what you want to achieve in the hotel contract

Meeting Specifications

Include all Properties to:

Create the competition

Get your name out

Compare the Obvious

Hotel room rates

Meeting room rental charges

Food and beverage costs

Compare the Obvious

Complimentary rooms policy

Anything else that is an added benefit to your group for booking the property

Move Forward to a Formal Contract

5 Elements Needed

1. An offer with definite terms

2. Acceptance of the terms

3. Requirement of consideration

5 Elements Needed

4. Competent parties authorized to enter into the agreement

5. Statute of frauds (two types of contracts apply to this industry)

• Contract whose terms cannot be performed within one year’s time

• Sale of goods exceeding $500

Legal Implications of 9-11

Impossibility

Impracticability

Frustration of Purpose

Legal Principles

Performance is impossiblePurpose has been frustratedPerformance is much more

burdensome than expected (impracticable)

Applies only when parties did not allocate the risk

Impossibility of Performance

Destruction, deterioration or unavailability of the subject matter or tangible means of performance

Failure of the agreed upon means of performance or contemplated mode of delivery or payment

Impossibility of Performance

Supervening illegality

Failure of intangible means of performance

Death or illness

Impracticability of Performance Three Part Test

Was there an unexpected contingency?

Did the event make the performance impossible or impracticable?

Upon whom should the risk of unexpected blame be placed?

Frustration of Purpose The object must be frustrated by a

supervening event The other party must have contracted

and the attainment of the object was a basic assumption

There must be near total frustration The party seeking to use the defense

must not have contributed to the frustration

Force Majeure Clause

The intent of the parties must be very clear

Consider making the Force Majeure clause broader in scope

So Now What Do We Do With this Contract?

Addendum

Label the Addendum as Attachment 1

Cross reference any deleted paragraphs in the contract to Attachment 1 and the paragraph number

Cover Letter to Hotel

The organization is accepting your

proposal as amended

Request hotel to initial all changes

Request hotel to initial the bottom

of each page

Request hotel to counter sign

contract and Addendum

Thank YouThank You

Diane C. Barnette